The Wild got their first real look at head coach Bruce Boudreau in Minnesota swag.

Unfortunately, Boudreau did not don Minnesota Wild attire, but rather that of the Minnesota Twins as the coach was on hand to throw out the opening pitch ahead of the Twins' contest against the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday.

Boudreau signed a four-year deal with the Wild on May 7, a week after being fired by the Anaheim Ducks. If his pitch is any inclination, the Wild appear to be in good hands.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Heartbreak Kid will be in the house when the Pittsburgh Penguins host the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final on Sunday.

Former WWE wrestler Shawn Michaels recently became tied to the team thanks to the red-hot line of Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino, and Phil Kessel, dubbed HBK for short. After he tuned in to Game 2 while trending on Twitter in Pittsburgh, the club invited Michaels to Game 5, an offer he could not refuse.

In the video, a seemingly shirtless Michaels admits to being new to the game of hockey, and very appreciative of the love from the Penguins and their fans.

"I'm OK with being irrelevant, that's why I retired," Michaels said in the video. "But you guys have made 'HBK' so relevant right now and it's been a blast interacting with everybody over Twitter the last couple days."

Time will tell whether the Penguins will have an opportunity to knock the Lightning out of the playoffs in Game 5 thanks to some sweet chin music.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Say cheese, Phil.

When Phil Kessel was acquired by the Pittsburgh Penguins from the Toronto Maple Leafs the move appeared to be a perfect fit, giving Kessel the opportunity to finally step out from under the microscope that is the Toronto media.

He has done just that and is now being rewarded for it.

"He doesn't necessarily want to be in front of the camera or really need that," Sidney Crosby told NHLcom's Dan Rosen.

Kessel has been occupying the team's third line and has thrived, leading the team in scoring with 16 points, while sitting just three points back of the league lead.

Former Maple Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle mentored Kessel during his tenure in Toronto and insists the Penguins sniper prefers to do things his own way.

"The one thing that he doesn't want is he doesn't want management or coaches or the media to see the real Phil," Carlyle said. "He's very guarded in that respect. He wants to hang with his teammates. He's always in the middle of that. He just wants to be a teammate and to let other people decide who the guy is, and that's why he's very comfortable in the role he's cast in now."

And as far as Kessel's teammates in Pittsbugh are concerned, he is nothing less than a player chock-full of talent.

"But you get in a race with him and you're going to get beat," said Kris Letang.

"He shoots the puck so effortless," goaltender Jeff Zatkoff said. "Everyone knows he has a hard shot, but he's coming down the wing and it looks like he's just flinging it on the net, but it just comes so heavy and so quick. If he hits a spot, it's tough to save. You don't have time to readjust."

Jim Rutherford - who was named a finalist for General Manager of the Year on Wednesday - feels there is an unwarranted hate-on for Kessel.

"Lots of people don't like Phil Kessel for some reason," Rutherford said. "He was only the best player Toronto had for (six) years, year in and year out, and he got the blame for everything, which was very unfair."

Love him or hate him, Kessel has been a dominate force for the Penguins during the postseason, having been held off the score sheet in just three of the team's 14 playoff games.

The only problem now being that his furious play is bound to attract attention and cameras alike.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Two goalies have started playoff games for the Pittsburgh Penguins this year, none of whom are named Marc-Andre Fleury.

Jeff Zatkoff was called upon early when he was the only healthy goalie on the roster, but Matt Murray has since taken over the starting gig - perhaps for good.

But general manager Jim Rutherford doesn't see the Penguins permanently moving on from Fleury anytime soon.

When asked whether Fleury was done with the organization, Rutherford flat out responded, "absolutely not."

"You can never have enough good goalies," Rutherford explained at a press conference Thursday. "The Penguins have three good ones now. I feel bad for Fleury. He’s such a great team guy and we’re fortunate that he is. He’s handled
this situation like a pro. First class. He’s ready to go when called on."

Fleury has been with the club since being drafted first overall in 2003, and he backstopped the club to a Stanley Cup win in 2009. He's recovered from a concussion that kept him out early on and is able to serve as Murray's backup, but head coach Mike Sullivan is sticking with the rookie, who has the look of a bona fide No. 1 goalie.

In terms of cap commitment, the Penguins owe Fleury an average of $5.75 million through to the end of 2018-19, while Murray will make $625,000 next season before hitting restricted free agent status.

Throw in the fact several clubs will be looking to add quality goaltending in the offseason and the possibility of an expansion draft in the not too distant future, and Fleury's long-term future with the Penguins may not be as absolute as Rutherford is currently letting on.

For now, he's a high-paid cheerleader who could be thrust into the fire at a moment's notice should Murray falter or succumb to injury.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Zack Kassian is ready to embrace the future in Edmonton.

The 25-year-old, who signed a one-year contract worth a reported $1.5 million with the Oilers on Thursday, will enter next season knowing he's earned a spot on a roster less than a year after going through the NHL's substance abuse program.

"For them to give me another opportunity to show that I've changed my life around ... I'm beyond happy," Kassian said. "I'm just excited to come in and hit the ground running knowing that this is going to be the year that'll make me or break me."

He's also eager to be part of a long-awaited measure of success in Edmonton.

Kassian recorded three goals and five assists in 36 games for the Oilers last season, and will look to rediscover the kind of game that allowed him to be selected 13th overall in 2009.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Mark Scheifele and Mark Stone notched three points apiece and Cam Talbot stopped all 24 shots he faced as Canada cruised past Sweden 6-0 in their quarterfinal matchup at the World Championship on Thursday.

Matt Dumba added a goal and an assist as Canada bounced back from a shutout loss to Finland in the final game of the preliminary round.

Canada will meet the United States in the semifinals on Saturday. The U.S. upset the Czech Republic in a shootout in their quarterfinal Thursday.

Russia will take on Finland in the other semifinal. Russia earned a 4-1 win over Germany and Finland thumped Denmark 5-1 in quarterfinal action.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Zack will be back.

The Edmonton Oilers signed forward Zack Kassian to a one-year contract Thursday.

He played 36 games for the Oilers this season after being acquired in a trade from the Montreal Canadiens for goaltender Ben Scrivens in December.

Kassian was traded to the Canadiens by the Vancouver Canucks for Brandon Prust in July.

The 25-year-old was admitted into the NHL's substance abuse program after being involved in a car accident over the summer. He was reinstated Dec. 15 and immediately waived by Montreal, which facilitated the deal to Edmonton.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Steven Stamkos was back on the ice with teammates Thursday after a couple days off, but the Tampa Bay Lightning captain couldn't say he was any closer to a return when asked whether he'd play in the postseason.

"I'm hoping to, but there's still a real possibility I may not play at all in the playoffs," Stamkos told reporters following practice.

Head coach Jon Cooper said Stamkos is still in a "holding pattern" as he remains on blood thinners following vascular surgery to treat a blood clot in April.

Though the 26-year-old wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of playing in Game 4, Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times notes Stamkos is "sounding more like he's realizing he may not play."

When asked how soon a decision on whether he'll play will come, Stamkos deferred, citing a lack of information on his condition.

"The thing with this situation, there's no data out there to support whether coming back earlier than the initial prognosis is safe or not, if there's elevated risks or not," he said. "I mean, it's such a unique situation and obviously not a common thing, that there's really no clinical studies to suggest.

"So there's risk management. You have to just, like I said, do your best to gather as many opinions, gather as much information as possible so you're well educated on the risks if you do come back, realizing that it's not worth the risk. So we haven't reached that stage yet."

Stamkos hasn't played since March 31.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Ben Bishop's injury will likely keep him from starting Game 4 for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The goaltender is "in that doubtful range" for Friday's game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper told reporters Thursday.

Cooper added that Bishop hasn't been ruled out for the contest entirely.

The netminder practiced Thursday, but didn't occupy a net of his own and wasn't a full participant.

Bishop said he's still not feeling 100 percent healthy after being stretchered off with a leg injury in Game 1.

The Penguins lead the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals 2-1.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

John Scott arrived on Twitter with a tease.

The All-Star MVP is already verified after joining the social media platform Thursday.

As for Scott's plans with the account, our guess is he'll be promoting the upcoming movie about his wild journey from controversial trade castoff to All-Star hero.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.